No. 17: Sashimi Sandwich at North Shore Poke Company

The picture you see above is crappy, and it shows only a quarter cut. The sandwich isn't much to look at anyway. Its appearance isn't important. What's important is that it is possibly the best dish at North Shore Poke Company, which is little more than a cold station with the proprietor, Shawn Gole, spooning out cubed raw ahi from a chilled trough, tossing it with sauces and vegetables, and packing them up in clamshell containers as soon as he gets an order for poke.

This sandwich isn't poke. In fact, I don't even think it's even Hawaiian, or Japanese.

Built upon the soft pliancy of a La Brea Bakery ciabatta, which yields at the sight of your teeth, Gole adds some sprouts, avocado, silken slices of raw salmon sashimi and a sugary papaya-seed dressing that enriches every bite. It's tangy, refreshing, and will be unlike any fish sandwich you'll ever likely to have, since it's neither fried nor loaded with mayo.